Clothes pin or retainer.



T. M. PRICE &J. W. TILLMAN.

CLOTHES PIN 0R RETAINER.

APPIQICATION FILED SEPT. I. 1916 Patented Sept. 11, 1917.

WKTED @TATE% PATENT FFTQEG THOMAS M. PRICE AND JOHN W. TILLMAN, OF COOPER, TEXAS.

oLoTHns PIN on TAINER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. it, 1191?.

Application filed September 1, 1916. Serial No. 118,087.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, THOMAS PRICE and JOHN W. TILLMAN, citizens of the United States, residing at Cooper, in the county of Delta and State of Texas, have invented new and useful.Improvements. in Clothes Pins or Retainers, of which the following is a specification;

This invention relates to clothes pins or retainers of that class which are held applied to a clothes line, preferably of wire, and embodying gripping clamps extending in opposite directions from a central resilient organization. One object of the present invention is to provide a clothes pin or retainer having a novel form of clothes engaging clamps or jaws, each clamp or jaw being adapted for positive operation with thick or thin garments or articles disposed on the clothes line and exerting a positive retaining tension or clamping action relatively to the garments or articles. A further object of the invention is to provide a clothes pin or retainer preferably constructed of wire and movable'longitudi nally on a clothes line and embodying clothes clamps or jaws controlled by an intermediate resilient organization of such construction and disposition of cooperating parts or components so as to maintain the said parts or components in positive working position with a strong resilient tension relatively to the clamps or jaws. A further object of the invention is to provide a clothes pin or retainer having sliding application to a clothes line and provided with oppositely projecting clothes engaging clamps or aws of such form as to provide pendent guards to assist in maintaining them in working position on a line and insuring a reliable engagement with the clothes or articles, said clamps or. jaws being connected to a controlling intermediate resilient organization which imparts to the clamps or jaws a strong spring action, though adapting the said clamps or jaws for ready and easy manual operation to set the same relatively to clothes or articles disposed on the line. With these and other objects and advantages inmviewthe. invention consists in the construction .and' arrangement of the several parts which will be more fully hereinafter described and; claimed.

Inthe drawing: 1 Figure l is a perspective. view; of a clothes pin. or. retainenembodying the; features of the invention and shown applied to a clothes line.

Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view of the pin or retainer shown applied.

"Fig. 3 is a longitudinal vertical section through the pin or retainer shown applied to a line and illustrating the clamps or jaws engaging clothes or articles varying in thickness.

Fig. 4C is a transverse vertical section taken in the plane of the line 4%, Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a transverse vertical section taken in the plane of the line 55, Fig. 3.

The numeral 5 designates a clothes line which is preferably of wire, and thereon the improved pin or retainer is mounted to have longitudinal sliding movement. The improved pin or retainer comprises oppositely projecting approximately V-shaped clamps or jaws 6 having upwardly extending operating loops or grips 7 which straddle the line 5, a central resilient organization or member 8 located between the clamps or jaws and below the line 5, and a coiled slide eye 9 having loose engagement with the line 5 and disposed between the loops 7 above the resilient organization or member 8. Each clamp or jaw 6 has opposite side memhere 10 and 11 which converge toward and become continuous with an upwardly bent terminal 12 which closely fits the line 5 and constitutes the positive bearing portion of each clamp or jaw G. The members 10 and 11 have a material drop or extend downwardly at similar angles of inclination relatively to the line 5 so as to provide opposite guards which will be situated adj acent to articles of clothing or other articles disposed on the line and engaged by the clamps or jaws 6. The member 11 of the one clamp or jaw 6 isbent, as at 18, and continued upwardly one of the side members of the loop 7, and the member 10 of the opposite clamp or jaw 5 is provided with an angular bend I l and continues upwardly as one of the side members of the opposite loop 7. The member 10 of the one clamp 0r jaw 6 and the member 11 of the remaining clamp or jaw are bent inwardly at an angle, as at 15 and 16, to provide reversely positioned inwardly extending retaining arms 17 and 18 terminating in outwardly projecting hooks or bends 19 and 20 in line with the longitudinal central plane of the improved clothes pin or retainer and perform an important junction relatively tothe resil ent organization 8 as will now be explained. The resilient organization 8 comprises opposlte outer coils 21 and 22 continuous with an intermediate diagonal or oblique coil 23,angularly spaced apart from the coils 21 and 22,-as clearly shown by Fig, 2. The coiled slide eye 9 has its opposite terminals depending from opposite portions of the said eye, as at 24, and merging into the intermediate angularly disposed coil 28, one coil of each of the two coil members composing the intermediate angular coil 23 merging into the innermostccoil memberof each of the outer or side coils'21' and22, andthe side members of the loops or grips 7 opposite those continuing by the bends 13 and 14 into the members or guards 11 and 10 of the clamps or jaws 6 merge into the outer coil members of the side coils 21 and 22. The retaining arms 17 and 18 continuing respectively from side members of the clamps or jaws 6 as hereinbefore explained pass through the opposite side coils 21 and 22 in reverse positions and also through the inter-. mediate coil 28, and the hooks 19 and 20 of the respective retaining arms 17 and 18 extend outwardly over opposite portions of the intermediate angular coil 23, as shown by Fig. 2. It will therefore be seen that the coils 21 and 22 are held closely to the center or are prevented from springing or flaring outwardly in opposite lateral directions and the resilient organization 8 by this means is not only rendered compact, but at the same time a stronger resilient action is set up relatively to the clamps or jaws 6, Which effects a positive clamping action of the jaws relatively to the clothes line and the garments or articles that may be disposed on the said line and engaged by the clamps or jaws. It is found in practice that the tension exerted on the jaws 6 by the resllient organization 8 constructed as just explained will hold the clothes pin or retainer as a whole in upright position on the line and ready for immediate use 01' positive application to garments or articles thrown over the line and adapted to be retained in ap plied position on the latter. Though the resilient action on the clamps or jaws 6 is strong, the said clamps or jaws may be readily released from the line by drawing the loops or grips 7 toward each other, there by lifting the outer main bearing terminals 12 of the clamps or jaws from the line, and when the clamps or jaws are thus released the pin or retainer as a whole may be readily moved longitudinally on the line into any position desired relatively to thea-rticle or garment desired to be retained on the line. The continual tendency of the spring organization 8 is to draw or press theclamps or jaws 6 downwardly relatively to the line and the garments or articles that may be engaged thereby, and though the retaining tension on the jaws 6 is strong, the pulling act1on on the garments or artlcles engaged by the jaws is reduced to a minimum, the

and in addition to the advantages'en'suingfrom the retention of the coils of the spring organization 8 relatively to the jaws 6 and the restriction of the parts of the pin or retainer against outward orlateral movement the pin or retainer is uniformly strengthened and the parts thereof are prevented from breaking by continued operation of the aws, and as a consequence the pin or retainer will be exceptionally durable in its service. It is preferred to construct the improved pinor retainer of a single piece of wire of a non-corrosive character, and it will be seen that all parts of the pin are confined at the center and will notbe brought into contact with the fingers of the operator or user of the pin or retainer and the garments or clothes on the line cannotpossibly become entangled therewith. Moreover, the central structure of the improved pin or retainer doesnot project outwardly beyond the outer members of the jaws, the jaws having the maximum side projections relatively to the pin or retainer as a whole. A number of the pins or retainers maybe readily threaded on a line and be held in operative position for immediate use, with advantages in'applying clothes or other articles to the line. 7

In view of the strength and durability of the improved pin or retainer its manufacture may be carried on ata comparatively small cost and it is proposed to use anysuitable mechanism for constructing the pin or retainer.

v What is claimed is: a

1. A device of the class described, comprising an eye to continually engage and slide on a clothes line and provided with oppositely projecting clamps fully open at their lower portions and having inclined side guards with depending portions adjacent to the central'portion of the device, said guards extending upwardly from their depending portions to form bent bearing terminals which extend over and exert a downward pressure on the clothes line, a central resilient coiled member between the lower portions of the clamps and below the said eye and having a part of one of the side guards extending upwardly from each of its opposite ends,

and an operating grip extending from each of the terminals of the resilient coiled member upwardly above the eye and clamps.

2. A device of the class described, comprising an eye to continually engage and slide on a clothes line and provided with oppositely projecting approximately V-shaped clamps having upwardly bent bearing portions extending over and normally engaging the clothes line, the greater portion of the clamps being below the said eye and the clothes line and formed with depending side guards, a resilient coil member between the lower inner portions of the clamps and below the said line engaging eye for controlling the action of the clamps and from opposite portions of which parts of the guards extend upwardly to the said bearing portions, and operating means for the clamps extending upwardly from the opposite ends of the resilient coil member.

3. A device of the class described, comprising a slide eye continually engaging and longitudinally movable on a clothes line, and oppositely projecting clamps having means for operating them, and a resilient clamp controlling member between the clamps and below the said slide eye, said resilient member comprising coils arranged in planes at right angles to the eye and an intermediate angular coil spaced from the latter coils and having its ends respectively continuing into the inner members of the outer coils.

at. A device of the class described, comprising a longitudinally arranged clothes line engaging eye including a series of coils in fixed closeassociation, oppositely projecting clamps located mainly below and extending upwardly over and bearing upon the clothes line, transversely positioned spring coils below the clothes line engaging eye and be ing a slide eye to permit longitudinal movement thereof on a clothes line, oppositely projecting clamps having upwardly extending operating means at their inner portions which extend above the slide eye and clothes line adjacent to opposite terminals of said eye, a clamp controlling resilient member between the clamps and below the eye, said resilient member consisting of outer transversely arranged coils and an intermediate diagonal coil connecting and merging into the inner ends of the outer coils, and retaining arms extending inwardly from opposite side portions of the retaining clamps and en tering the outer and intermediate coils in reverse directions, the ends of these arms having engagement with opposite portions of the intermediate coil.

6. A device of the class described, comprising a longitudinally arranged clothes line engaging eye, oppositely projecting clamps having operating means adjacent to the opposite terminals of the said eye and mainly depending below the clothes line and the eye and having upper converged bends extending over and normally bearing upon the clothes line, and a group of outer and inter mediate spring coils transversely positioned relatively to the line engaging eye and below the latter and also between the inner portions of the clamps for controlling the action of the latter, the clamps having side members with angularly bent retaining arms continuous with one side member of each clamp and reversely entering and extending through. the outer coils and the intermediate coil, the said retaining arms having their mds formed with looking bends respectively engaging opposite portions of the intermediate coil.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

THOMAS M. PRICE. JOHN lV. TILLMAN.

\Vitnesses W. T. Kines'ron, J. J. SPENCER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

